


So It Rains

by WhyDontWeBegin



Series: Born of Light, Bathed in Shadow [4]
Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Idiots in Love, Insecurity, Rain, Viera Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), idiots falling in love, inspired by: an actual rainy day, just soft rainy day fluff really, no beta we just die
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-10
Updated: 2020-03-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:54:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23095909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhyDontWeBegin/pseuds/WhyDontWeBegin
Summary: X'rhun returns to Emlyn's inn room in Gridania during a thunderstorm. Softness ensues.
Relationships: X'rhun Tia/Original Female Character(s), X'rhun Tia/Warrior of Light
Series: Born of Light, Bathed in Shadow [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1576069
Comments: 4
Kudos: 16





	So It Rains

**Author's Note:**

> god, im so ahjfdafjhd for this man. he's good and wholesome. and im weak for nerdy characters. so here I am, back on my bullshit. 
> 
> This is set a couple months after they get together, so Emlyn's still struggling with several aspects of having an actual romantic relationship. she baby.

X’rhun’s ears flicked as he stepped inside and removed his hat. His coat was heavy on his shoulders, wet as it was, and he was quick to slip out of it and leave it hanging by the door. There was another one there, next to it a familiar rapier propped up against the wall, and a towel on the floor. His hat joined the collection, hanging on his own rapier, before he turned.

Emlyn sat by the window, gazing out, chin resting on her palm. Her legs were tucked underneath her on the chair, and she didn’t acknowledge his presence. The only sounds were of the rain hitting the glass, the occasional roll of thunder, their breathing, and the fountain in the room. (He never did understand that, but it was what it was.) X’rhun leaned against the wall and slowly removed his boots before looking back at his lover.

She was beautiful, like this. Expression distant, deep in thought, a softness to her posture he rarely observed. Like this, she almost looked like a different person entirely, a healer rather than a warrior. X’rhun wondered how things would be different, were that the case. He quietly moved across the room, brushing his hair out of his face with one hand.

Emlyn noticed him, then, turning to look at him and X’rhun dared to say that she _lit up_ , seeing him. A smile pulled at her lips and her eyes crinkled at the corners, softening, and the Viera leaned against him when he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, leaning over to kiss her forehead and brush her bangs away from her eyes. “Rhun,” she murmured, soft and affectionate. Even now, it made warmth bloom in his chest to hear.

Her hands came up, one gently cupping his cheek, thumb tracing the marking under his eye while the other wound behind his neck. X’rhun made a deep, rumbling noise of approval at the contact, his ears flicking and tail brushing against her thigh. Emlyn leaned closer, pressing her lips to his cheek in a chaste (and rare) show of her affection. He covered the hand on his cheek with his own, closing his eyes.

Emlyn would never understand him. Not really. She knew this. X’rhun was something of a mystery to her, an enigma, defying all the odds.

… An enigma she did not want to let go of, though.

Emlyn made a noise of confusion as he tugged her from her seat, leading her several steps back and taking both of her hands in his own. One hand trailed up to her face, featherlight touches tracing the tattoos on her arm in the process, intertwining their fingers with the other. Her breath caught in her throat as he did, any words that may have surfaced stolen by the look on his face. Warm, and loving, and certainly enough to make her heart burst in her chest. (Was this love, she wondered? Emlyn couldn’t remember.)

There was a measure of trust, in this. In her letting him be so affectionate. He still remembered how she had shied away from touch after they officially became _more_. It hadn’t been something he expected then, but the more he learned of Emlyn, the more it made sense. Still, though, it did not change how he felt. It did not change what X’rhun felt, and it certainly did not stop him from tugging her down into a kiss. He heard the small gasp of surprise that escaped her, and then she moved closer, tentative and hesitant. A few moons alone were not enough to assuage all of her fears.

X’rhun didn’t mind, though. Perhaps she was a mess of a woman, but that didn’t change that she was _his_ mess, and that was enough. He could help her, and he _would_ , and he knew she’d _let_ him. He knew she’d try. (He’d realized it when she risked returning to his side, even as a criminal, and again when she put so much into healing his injuries after fighting Lambert. Perhaps that was when he realized that her feelings went beyond the relationship they had, at the time.)

Her free hand rested gently on his chest, and he knew that part of the reason was she didn’t trust it not to tremble on its own. But that was okay. He pressed a kiss to the corner of her mouth, and then another to her jaw before resting his head against her shoulder, winding his arm around her neck. The way she sagged against him was indication enough that it was welcome. X’rhun’s tail wound around her waist and he closed his eyes as her hand dropped, resting on his hip.

It was almost funny, how their positions were reversed from the typical, in Emlyn’s mind. Yet, still, the gentle press of X’rhun’s body against her own, his warmth seeping into her skin, his breath on her collarbone. It all felt _right_ , completely natural, like this was exactly where she was supposed to be. That scared her, just a little. Intimacy scared her, really. She wondered if X’rhun had realized it, and then decided he probably had. It wasn’t like he walked on eggshells with her or anything, far from it, but he was always careful to ensure she could get away if it was too much. Always made sure what he was doing was okay.

Gods, he really was far too good for her. But he chose her anyways, so selfish as it was, she would take what he gave. Emlyn had always liked to believe in choice, and who X’rhun cared for was _his_ choice in the end, irregardless of if she understood. So she released a breath and shifted, resting her chin atop his head, feeling the flick of his ear against her cheek. But he didn’t move away, rather made a pleased hum, and so she stayed.

She stayed.

**Author's Note:**

> as always, big thanks to the [book club](https://discord.gg/c8Yee9S) for being aggressively affectionate and supportive <3 love y'all


End file.
